05 January 2012

Retro love - Prawn Cocktail

Some matches never get old. Tomatoes and basil, apples and cinnamon, fish and chips with lemon, red wine and cheese. Cold prawns with 1970s cocktail sauce. Mmmmm awesome.... Forthcoming - a particularly old-school, but not tired recipe. You might have a similar one in a frayed, 30 year old cookbook somewhere. Not new, old, done a thousand times and more. But here it is again.

Make a mayonnaise by vigorously beating the egg yolks, mustard and salt and pepper until rich and creamy, then add vinegar and slowly pour in olive oil (electric easier!). This should fairly successfully emulsify, but if all else fails, use store-bought mayo. (it still tastes pretty good)

Add whipped cream and other seasonings to mayonnaise, adjusting seasoning if necessary.

chop avocado and most of the prawns, and add them to the mayonnaise, and use the remainders for garnish, along with lemon wedges and cos, then pour mix on top.

Can be prepared ahead of time and chilled - just leave the avocado whole and add to the mix at the last minute.
If you use a store bought mayonnaise and buy your prawns peeled, this entire dish can be prepared in about 5 minutes.
This is a fairly saucy ratio - you may want to add more prawns and avocado, and maybe a big squeeze of lemon if you like a lighter style. Cucumber, sugar snap peas, green mango and many other crisp greens could be added or used in place of cos and avocado. Mint and/or dill are also lovely additions.